Article of manufacture



F. W. EPPERSON ARTICLE OF MANUFACTURE April 16, 1929.

Filed July 26, 1926 v INVENTOR.

W W 5121 4 BY (7 ATTORNEY Patented 16, 1929.

' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK W. EPPERSON, 0F OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA.

ARTICLE or MANUFACTURE.

5 Application filed July 26, 1926. Serial No. 124,841.

a package of the character described which provides a serving cup of such capacity with respect to the beverage base contained therein that hydration of the base to fill the cup will produce a beverage of predetermined strength.

Another object of the invention is to provide a package of the character described which is so shaped and sealed as to prevent contamination of the contents and cup surface during the transportation thereof, whereby it is particularly sanitary.

A further object of the invention is to provide a package of the character described which is of minimum Weightand is lacking in fragility.

'A still further object of the invention is to provide a package of the character described which is of simple structure, and may be manufactured so inexpensively that the container portion'may be discarded after the removal of the beverage therefrom.

Yet another object of the invention is. to

provide a package of the character described in which a closure member therefor 1s arranged to be used as a stirrer for the beverage. And still another object of the invention is to provide packages which are nestable so that a plurality thereof may bcpackcd to occupy a minimum of space.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of the preferred form of my. invention which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood, however, that I do not limit myself to the showing made by the said drawings and description, as I may adopt variations of the preferred form within the scope of my invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawings,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a section of one embodiment of the package of my invention.

Figures 2 and 3 are perspective views of closure members forming part of the package.

Figure 4 is a side view showing a plurality of the packages in nested relation.

Beverages in liquid form are comparatively bulkyso that whether they are to be stored, displayed on a shelf, or transported,

they occupy an undue amount of space.

Furthermore, the containers therefor must usually be' made of glass, which containers are bothlheavy and relatively expensive and are sub ect to breakage. Then again, the usual beverage contamers are not arranged for the direct drinking of the contents therefrom, so that a drinking vessel must be supplied for serving them. Since the principal ingredient of most beverages from a quantitative standpoint is water, the use of concentrated liquid or dry bases which are arranged to be hydrated to produce beverages has been resorted to, but such bases have heretofore been so put up for vending that their use has frequently proved unsanitary and inconvenient. In accordance with my invention, however, I provide a package for a dry beverage base which is so constituted that it provides a drinking vess sel for the beverage produced by hydrating the'base therein and also provides a stirrer,

it being noted that each package is pref- 7 nested together, sothat afnumber of packages willjfltogether occupy a minimum of space. And, furthermore, each package is so arranged that the charge of beverage base therein is protected against the penetration of dust orother contaminating matter before the package is opened.

As herewith particularly illustrated, the article of my invention comprises a cup 6 adapted to retain liquid in the cavity thereof and containing-Yacharge 7 of a beverage.

base, such charge, being:preferably in dry form and sealed withingthe cup cavity adjacent the bottom thereon-The charge 7, it will be noted, .preferably comprises a complete basefor thebeverage, so that the mere addition of water thereto to fill the cup cavity will produce a beverage of predeterloo mined strength. The cup 6 may be of any suitable form, but for certain reasons to be hereinafter specified, I prefer that it be generally frustro-conical in outline, with the opening thereof at the larger end.

Means are provided whereby the charge 7 is arranged to be normally held sealed in fixed position in the cup. As here shown, such means comprises the use of a closure member 8 having a disc shaped portion 9 which is arranged to have the lower surface thereof engage the top of the charge while its periphery lies adjacent the cap wall 11. To facilitate the removal. of the member 8, the latter is preferably provided at one edge portion with an extension or tab 12, which extension is arranged to lie along the wall when the member 8 is operativcly disposed in the cup. The extension 12 preferably extends at least to the cup lip 13, so that it may be readily grasped for effecting its removal without touching the inner walls of the cup. Means are provided for sealing the member 8 in its position, and as here shown, such means comprises the provision of a wrapping member 14 preferably completely overlying and enclosing the outer wall surfaces and the inner wall surface portions lying outwardly ofthe member 8, the edges of such wrapper preferably being disposed against the outer side 16 of the closure member. The wrapper 14, it will be noted, is preferably formed of a flexible and impervious material such as oiled paper so that the cup may be thereby maintained in sanitary condition during the storage and ,transportion thereof. Sealing of the package may be effected in any desired manner, and as here shown, such sealing is effected by means of'a second disc shape member 17 which is arranged to closely fit the cup adjacent and above the closure member 8 whereby the wrapper-14 may be held tightly engaged with the cup wall 11 and the wrapper ends be held against the closure member side 16. The member 17, it will be noted, is provided with a tab 18 for assisting the removal thereof, such tab being here shown provided at an edge of the member and disposed opposite the tab 12 of the inner closure member whereby the comparatively straight chord forming part of its perimeter at its juncture with the member will, by allowing space for the tab 12, between it and the cup wall prevent radial distortion of the cup as the member 17 is pressed into place. It will now of course be evident that the conical slope ofthe cup walls is particularly useful in permitting the wedging of the closure members into their places.

The member 8, it will now be noted, is

- preferably longitudinally scored, while the removed from. the cup and the portions 9 and 12 thereof disposed in substantially coplanar relation, the member may be creased along the score line thereof to pro vide a relatively stiff stirrer which may be used in facilitating the solution and mixing of the base in the water.

It will, of course, now be clear that to prepare the article of my invention, the base is first placed in the cup, the primary closure member 8 is positioned thereover, the wrapper 14 is then applied as indicated, and the completion of the package is then effected by pressing the closure member 17 into its place. To prepare the beverage for consumption, the member 17 would first be removed, followed by the wrapper and member 8, after which Water would be added to substantially fill the cup and the base stirred into the water by means of the member '8 disposed for use as a stirrer as previously described.

Owing to the fact that a considerable portion of the cup space is not utilized in the.

assembled package, the different packages may, on account of the particular shape of the cups, be nested, as illustrated in Figure 4, to thereby occupy a minimum space. It will now be noted that the slope of the cup walls is preferably such that the diameter of the closure members 17 substantially equals that of the cup base, so that the cups, when nested, will cooperate to produce a. particularly indestructible assembly and so may be transported without damage. It will be noted that the cup and closure members may be conveniently constructed of cardboard or other inexpensive material, so that they may be discarded after the consumption of the beverage.

I claim:

1. A package of the character described comprising a drinkingcup, a charge of a beverage base disposed in the cup cavity and arranged to be hydrated therein to provide a beverage to be drunk therefrom, and removable means arranged to secure and plurally seal said charge in said cup cavity.

2. A package of the character described comprising a drinking cup, a charge of a beverage base disposed in the bottom portion of the cup cavity, and a closure member for said cavity portion removably disposed in said cup and arranged to be utilized in its entirety'to provide a stirrer for a liquid in said drinking cup.

8. A package of the character described comprising a drinking cup, a charge of a beverage base disposed in the bottom portion of the cup cavity, a closure member for said cavity portion arranged to be opera-,

veloping the inside and outside. exposed surface of the cup.

4. A package of the character described comprising a drinking cup, a charge of a beverage base disposed in the bottom portion of the cavity of said cup, a removable closure member for said cavity portion, an envelope enclosing said cup and charge and having the opening edges thereof disposed over said member, and a sealing member arranged to be removably disposed over said envelope edges and arranged to effect the forcible engagement of said envelope with the inner surface of said cup around its perimeter.

5. A package of the character described comprising a cup-like container, a chargeoi a beverage base disposed in the container cavity, and removable means arranged-to secure and seal said charge in said cavity 20 i with a plurality of air-tight joints.

' In testimony'whereof I have hereunto set my hand at Oakland, California, this 19th.

day of July, 1926.

FRANK W. EPPERsoN. 

